Jackie Slater

The Patriots handed the former UCLA standout not just one Yellow Pages-sized binder but two — one for offense, the other for defense.

"The first day in this building, they gave me two playbooks," Slater said Thursday in a phone interview. "There was no, 'We'll give you one, then we'll give you the other.' It was, 'Here's both.' I felt like I was in a graduate-studies program, making flash cards and everything."

It's safe to say Slater has graduated with honors. Not only has he stepped in at receiver and safety for the playoff-bound Patriots, but Slater also made his first Pro Bowl...

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